


Royal Oversight

by Untouchable_Hexing_Witch



Category: X-Men Evolution
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Lemon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-20
Updated: 2015-06-20
Packaged: 2018-04-05 09:55:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4175490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Untouchable_Hexing_Witch/pseuds/Untouchable_Hexing_Witch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One is a Royal and the Other is not. So what do you do when you love someone you shouldn't? Nothing, enjoy it while you can because Forbidden Love is Bittersweet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Royal Oversight

**Author's Note:**

> O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O Disclaimer O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O
> 
> X-men Evolution and it’s characters don’t belong to me. They belong to Marvel, but if they did belong to me...wow...I would have some serious fun ;)
> 
> O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O
> 
> Roberto’s name is being cut to ‘Berto’ for most of the story. At some point it should make sense why but yeah...This takes place in a medieval times kinda era so they are underage but not much (and technically in those times it wouldn’t have been a big deal) so you have been warned. Hope you enjoy and Thanks for reading!

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O Royal Oversight O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Once upon a time in a far away land there used to be a beautiful kingdom. The land was rich, covered in bright colors. Green were the lushes plains in spring, yellow lit the summer skies, orange covered the ground in fall and everything turned white in winter.

Along with the beautiful season stood castles, tall and sturdy made of stone. Each had it's own lord, but they all held  loyalty to one ruler. The King...mighty was he and ruler of all...

One lord decided to change that, no longer happy with the situation of following another he gathered his forces and spoke to many of the other lords. He whispered venomous thoughts about being kings of their own castles, and after many convincing arguments they listened.

The day the the King fell shook the Kingdom, fire grazed the dark sky and stone tumbled to the ground as the palace fell. Word spread quickly...the king was dead, his wife and son followed. Though this was huge news that spread like wildfire there were those who were ignorant to it, those who were innocent...

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

A little girl ran through a field of scarlet flowers, giggling madly as she looked over her shoulder. They would be in hot pursuit after her, they had told her not to leave the castle, to stay inside and and play with her dolls but if she was a real princess like her father kept telling her over and over again shouldn't she be able to go where ever she wanted?

She slowed her run to a small skip as her tiny hands stretched out feeling her colorful surroundings. As she kept going she paid no attention to the ground in front of her keeping her eyes on the different shaped flowers instead and that's when she felt her feet hit something hard and she toppled over.

A small pout grazed her royal lips and she turned to look at what she had tripped over, assuming it would be a hill. What she saw though made her brown eyes open wide and a scream escaped her lungs.

Her guards which had been no where to be seen suddenly appeared in a heartbeat, one of them crouched to comfort the startled girl as another looked at the bundle that had made her yell.

Amara Aquilla, watched as the guard tapped the bundle twice with his foot and then heard the guard besides her say, "Is it alive?"

The other guard didn't get a chance to answer as the bundle moved making the small five year old girl jump and hide behind the tall bodyguard. She peeked over the side of his leg as the other guard grabbed and lifted part of the dirty rag to expose what was hiding underneath.

Amara's eyes grew large and a smile started forming on her features, "A friend!" she shouted excitedly and started making her way to the small boy that had been revealed.

The guard next to her easily grabbed her keeping her in place, "No princess..."

"But..."

"We do not know who he is, where he came from of where his alliance stands..."

"But.."

The guard put a finger to his lips giving her the clue that she needed to hush, "We will bring him with us and see what your father has to say about it..." He then gave a nod to the other guard who nodded back and picked up the small boy, carrying him under his arm as if he was a bag of potatoes.

The guard next to her stood up and both guards started making their way through the fields with the small girl trailing behind them.

As she walked she studied the boys face. He was dark skinned like herself, no hair on his head and his cheeks were dusted with dirt. As they walked his hands dangled back and forth. After watching it a few times her hand went up and made contact with his. A small smile started curling on her face as she squeezed it...she liked making new friends.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O

Later Amara found herself in her playroom. The guards had taken the small boy to her father and she hadn't seen nor heard anyone since then so it came as a surprise when a small knock echoed through her room and the door creaked open.

She watcher her handmaiden, Ororo walked into the room and give a nod towards her making her grin and run to her.

"Roro!"

The dark skinned, white haired maiden who was in her teens knelt to be at the child's height.

"Princess..."

"Do I have a new friend? Do I? Do I? Do I?"

The older girl gave a small smile and took her hand and started to guide her to a window. When they peeked outside they saw the small boy heading into the stable house following a well built blond man

"It seems that you do...he has been put under ser Victor's charge in the stables..."

"Oohhh..." Was the small excited reply.

"His name is Berto..."

"Ber...to..." She repeated slowly testing the name out. After saying the name again she giggled and clapped her hands and turned to Ororo who was already dragging her away from the window.

"Now now little one...it's ok to be excited but you have to be very careful..."

"Why?"

"Because Berto doesn't remember anything about where he came from...the only thing he remember is his name..."

"Why?"

"Hank, took a look at him and it seems he got hit on his head...hard..." As she did this she pressed on Amara's skull making her frown.

"It was a big boo-boo?"

"Yes it was....I know you are excited but when you're allowed to play with him you have to remember to be nice...ok?"

The little girl nodded eagerly as she was released to sit back on the floor with her dolls. She grabbed the nearest one to her and touched the temple of the dolls head before bringing the toy to her chest and giving it hug, silently promising that she would always be nice...

But promises were hard to keep...

O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O

“Ow...ow ow ow..Berto! Help me!”

“No way! I’m not falling for that again!”

Amara pouted and her lips trembled as wetness damped her eyes, “But...But…” the tears came and the sob echoed around the field they were in.

Dark brown waves appeared from the side of a tall hay pile, his brown orbs watched her as she sniffed into her arm while one of her hands rubbed her ankle. He frowned at the sight and completely moved away from the hay pile making a run to her.

An action he regretted when he bent down next to her because as soon as he did he felt the warm gooey substance slide down his hair into his face. Seconds after the action the faux sobs turned into a fit of giggles and his eyes slowly opened to look into eyes a lighter tone than his own.

“Got you!” she remarked in between gasp for air as her laughter kept ringing around him.

The older boy gave a small growl before giving a sigh and saying, “Not again!” in a defeated tone.

“Yes, again,” Amara responded and giggled some more, but those giggles didn’t last long as she felt the same gooey mess hit her face. Her mouth opened into an “O” and she turned to the now laughing boy. “How dare you! I am a lady!”

  
“No you’re not! You’re just a girl!”

She pouted and her little hands dug into the earth, “I am still your princess!” and with those last words she gave a war cry and ran towards him, mud in hand.

The mud war continued on for a few more minutes, neither child feeling the pair of eyes on them.

“They’re getting close…” The white haired young woman nodded at the words while a small smile played on her lips. “The king won’t like it…” the small smile quickly faltered at the additional sentence by the gruff voice.

“Why?”

“You know why…”

“She’s only ten…”

“And you were just a few years older when I caught sight of you...when you were promised to me. The king has plans for his princess, plans to merge another castle with ours…”

The dark skinned woman spat on the floor, eyes narrowed, “He is not my king...my king is dead…but hopefully there is hope for the future…” she stiffened as she felt heat at her back but the anger she was feeling melted away as he whispered in her ear.

“Shh...Ro...that kind talk is treason darling…”

“But Logan, you were there! You know the boy wasn…”

“Shh...what I told you stays between us.”

After a moment she nodded again and heard him retreat out of the room. Her blues eyes had stayed on the two small figures outside the castle window throughout the whole talk and her smile returned as Amara declared victory over Roberto. After a few more seconds she sighed and pulled herself away from watching her small mistress reflecting on Logans words, and hoping against them.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

It was a warm summer day, five years later when it happened. There was a change between the friendship of  a young princess and a stable boy.

She sat on a huge rock, her chocolate colored orbs watched the orange lit sky. She didn’t turn away from the sight, not even when his sigh broke the silence between them.

“Why do I always fall for it?” he questioned, though she had a feeling it was more of a self musing question she decided to answer anyway.

“Because you’re a true gentleman…”

He gave a small smile, “If you say so...but really I’m just a stable boy...and you’re my future queen...I still have to remember that from time to time.”

She didn’t reply to the comment so he turned to stare at her. Her eyes were still on the setting sun, from the position she was sitting in he assumed she was crossing her legs and her hands were in her lap. She was a real princess. He winced at the thought and winced even more when he took a good look at her dress.

“You’re going to get in trouble...wasn’t that a new gown?”

This comment finally made her look away and she looked down at herself. Her purple dress, embedded with small diamonds had patches of dirt and dry mud, “Yes it was...”

Her eyes then turned to him. He was the one looking at the setting sun now. His trousers were covered in mud and she smiled at the fact that they were both always covered in mud.

“But there will be others…”

“I think it’s time to get you back home…”

She nodded and stood up, giving the sun one last look before a smile curled onto her face, “I’ll race you!” and off she went.

He gave another sigh but followed. She giggled and as she ran she turned to look over her shoulder to see how much of a lead she had, if she hadn’t done that she would have seen the rock in her path and her eyes wouldn’t have widened as her body tumbled backwards.

She didn’t know how he was able to reach her so fast, but he was there, his body merging and turning with hers so that when she hit the ground it wasn’t hard solid rock she felt but the softness of his body.

She froze at the sudden close contact and at the breath on her her cheek.

“Are you ok, your highness?”

The mumbled words broke her out of her daze and she nodded while making an effort to get up. Unfortunately for both of them they ended up on the edge of a hill and the push she gave to move away from him caused their closeness again as they rolled downwards.

When they came to a halt they were in a reverse position. He had an elbow on each of her sides, they dug into the earth helping hold his body up so that he wouldn’t squish her and so that he was looking directly into her face. His eyes were wide as he stared at her and their compromising position. Complete silence surrounded them but was broken as her sweet laughter filled the air making Berto looked at her as if she had gone insane.

“What is so funny?”

Her laughter calmed and one of the hands rose and touched his cheek, “You have fresh mud…”

He eyed her own appearance. They must have gone through a puddle because her brown locks were covered in the substance. His hand then reached down and grabbed a soiled lock, “I wouldn't laugh to hard...I’m not the only one…”

Her head turned sideways to look, the action causing her cheek to skim his hand and out of nowhere a burst of heat seemed to come over them. Her laughter died and her eyes widened as she realized how close they were and the fact that they were even closer because Berto had moved in towards her to inspect the lock of muddied hair.

Thier eyes locked and a sensation she hadn’t felt before burned her insides. Her eyes closed as she felt his breath on her face and soon the distance between them closed as his lips descended on hers. A second later when her eyes opened he was standing and looking away from her completely flustered. Her own cheeks flared up as she sat and made to get up but before her hands could touch the ground his hand was already outstretched towards her.

She shyly took it and and he easily pulled her up refusing to look at her. His eye stayed downcast as he started sputtering what she assumed was an apology. She briskly walked past him making his eyes move away from the dark red flowers on the floor to watch her go.

“Come on...they’ll be coming after us soon if we don’t get back home….”

He nodded though he knew she couldn’t see him and followed her feeling rather foolish. Those feelings evaporated and his heart started beating fast though as she turned and gave him a smile.

They went their separate ways once they reached the castle. After he was out of sight Amara found herself skipping to her room, her heart racing at the memory of the warmness against her lips.

She didn't stop skipping even when she entered her room and ended up bumping into Ororo. When both had regained their balance the younger girl gave an excited screech and hugged the older woman.

"You're in a good mood..."

Amara smiled brightly, "Well it was a good day."

"What made it good?" The dark skinned woman asked perking a brow.

The question made the princess stop in place. Her face turned a shade of red matching that of a tomato and she started twirling her fingers as she looked at the floor, “Well...you see..."

After she got the story out she looked up at her handmaid, expecting a teasing smile on her face but instead was met with a wide eyed stare. Brown arms reached for her and grabbed at her arms as the white haired woman looked around in a paranoid fashion.

Her face then closed in on her own, "Amara...you must not tell anyone else this..."

"But..."

"You are a princess and with that title comes certain responsibilities. There are plans in motion for you child..."

"..." Amara expression turned to confusion at the words, not expecting this kind of reaction.

"Do you care about him?"

"...Yes..."

"In order to keep him near you can't say anything..."

"..."

"If your father finds out...he will send him away..."

Amara's eyes widen at this news and she slowly nodded, "I won't tell anyone..."

"Do you promise?"

"...I promise..."

The two females parted at the words and Ororo then went back to her duties as if the conversation hadn't taken place. Amara stood in place and watched her, her sudden excitement long gone.

The words and promise Ororo made her make haunted her for a few days, to the point where she avoided the confused stable boy, but eventually the separation was too much and she found herself seeking him out. They were covered in mud again that day.

The first month after the accidental kiss went by in a flash, both teens spending the same amount of time together as usual but making sure to stay a respectable distance. It didn’t matter how far away they stayed though, they could both feel it…something had changed between them and the more they tried to ignore it the more the tension between them grew. Thier gazes lasted longer, accidental touches became more frequent and their joking words became more serious.

The promise that was made was kept. Amara never told anyone about the incident, but after that first month she found that Ororo had made a mistake... she hadn’t told her not to do it again.

And it did happen again, in darkened corners, in open fields littered with red flowers, in the silence of the night...it happened over and over and over again.

The secret tryst would go on for a year before the young and beautiful princess would remember the dark words from her maid...before she was able to understand them to their full extent.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Amara groaned as she got shaken awake, a small murmur asking for a few more minutes escaped her parted lips.

“I’m afraid there is no more time.”

The brown orbs snapped open at the soft voice, picking up a hint of sadness. Amara sat up and looked around, faint light slipped in through her closed curtains. Though Ororo was masking her face with indifference her eyes and tone gave a warning of something big, “What’s going?”

“Sorry for waking you but your father is requesting your presence.”

Amara’s eyes perked, an excessive amount of noise was coming from outside, “What’s happening?” she asked  again.

“Some of the men are preparing for a trip, they will be departing in the morning.”

“Where to?”

“The castle to the south, an alliance with Lord Guthrie has been made. Our men are being sent to help train thiers.”

“...what knight do they send to lead the troops?”

“...Ser Howlett was chosen to lead them.”

Realization flooded into Amara’s being and she stood up abruptly to hug the older woman, “I see...that is why you are saddened? I’m so sorry! But the separation between you two won’t be long right? How long…”

“He has requested that I come along...and his wish was granted.”

Amara’s mouth dropped open in surprise at the words but before she could retort the white haired woman spoke again, “There is other news, but it will be better for you to hear them from your father. Come…” she pulled away from the younger girl towards her closet, “I think the occasion calls for purple…” and with that the closet was pulled open making the reflection of shimmering diamonds cover her face.

A few minutes later she found herself standing numbly in front of her parents. She wasn’t quite sure how she had gotten there, everything that happened after Ororo told her she would be leaving was a foggy haze. The only thing she could recall from the previous minutes was Ororo’s seldom face as she helped dress her and guide her there. It was was foreboding.

“You look well rested.”

Amara felt her lips move in a forced smile as she walked up the steps, bestowing a gentle kiss on both her parents cheeks.

“I slept very well,” she answered before moving away from them to once again face them. “There seems to be some excitement today…” she commented with faux gleefulness.

“Ah yes, well it’s a very exciting day.”

“Is it?”

“Yes, negotiations with the South have gone rather well. We will be uniting our forces to keep our borders safe, some of our troops will be heading over to help train their men in preparations for the ceremony.”

“Ceremony?” Amara asked and watch her father's lips part to speak but stopped when her mother touch his arm hushing him.

“My daughter...I’m sure they’ve talked to you about the union of lands in your studies…” Amara nodded as a feeling of dread overcame her body. “Lord Guthrie...he is not in the best health as of late, and you see he has a son…”

Her father interrupted, “A prince who will be king of the southern border...and you shall be it’s queen…”

The dread had become overwhelming, her stomach churned and she felt as if she would get sick right there in front of them. It somewhat subsided when she felt a small comforting aura, she heard the singular footstep move forward reminding her where she was, reminding her of the words spoken a year earlier. She was a princess and with that title came responsibilities.

A big smile adorned her face, “That is exciting news!”

Both her parents looked surprised by the initial reaction but soon smiled too, “We knew you would understand…” and with that her father leaned towards her and placed a kiss on her hair before walking back to his throne. Her mother went to her and held her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze as she murmured that her training would begin the following day, they only had a month until her betrothed came to meet her.

After a few minutes she numbly made her way back to her room, Ororo following close behind. On the way they meet guards and other maids, each congratulating her on the news. She thanked them with a smile and as she kept walking her chin stayed strong and high in the air, it wasn’t until she heard the click of the door closing behind Ororo that she fell to the ground, her body shaking as she submerged her sobs into her hands.

Ororo ran to her, dropping to her knees and pressing her against her chest. She ran her hand through the brown locks of hair while the young girls body shook and incoherent words passed her lips, the only comforting words she could give being “shh” and “I know”.

An hour later they were still in the same position but the tears had long subsided.

“You know?”

“Yes?”

“How? I did as your promised...I didn’t tell anyone…”

“I have been here for you from the beginning, I helped raise you...I know your heart…”

The quiet didn’t stay quiet for long after the soft words were spoken and neither made a move from their positions on the floor.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

She had refused to see Ororo, Logan and the men off the following morning, instead staying in bed pretending to be asleep knowing that she wouldn’t be able to hold the tears in if she did send them off. She had avoided Berto that day as well, if all the others knew about the new development there was no doubt that he knew too and she simply didn’t have the courage to face him.

Like before though, it didn’t matter how much she wanted to stay away from him...it was a useless fight.  In the later part of the day she had seeked Victor out hoping to have him prepare a horse to get her out and away from everything but it wasn't victor who she found.

She stopped her walk into the stable when she saw his bare back facing her. The muscles of his back contracted as he threw piles of hay into different horse stalls. At first she thought that he hadn't heard her and that she'd be able to escape without notice but when she took a step back his head moved so that he could look over his shoulder.

Her body froze and refused to move as his gaze burned into her. Her eyes looked away from his not wanting to see the emotion in them which turned out be a bad move because now she was focusing on the sweat that drizzled off his chin onto his strong arms. Her heart started racing and her mouth went dry at the sight. After a few seconds she got broken out of the spell by his husky tone.

"Should you be out by yourself?"

"I always go off on my own..."

"True, but considering the news I thought they'd put a stop to that..."

"..."

"Congratulations by the way."

Amara frowned and her lips parted to give an agitated reply but stopped as she heard the crunching of footprints behind her.

"Thank you very much," her voice was sweet as honey but her face was anything but sweet as she glared at the dark skinned boy would be man in front of her. She suddenly plastered a smile on her face and turned to see who had joined them.

"Your highness, what brings you here at this time?" Victor Creed, bowed his head in greeting before walking past her.

"Needed to clear my head and I thought a horse ride might help, I didn't know it was feeding time though so I'll go ahead and be taking my leave..."

"I'll have one ready for you in a few minutes."

"No, it's alrig..."

The hairy blond man went to get riding equipment from a side table and interrupted by looking at Roberto, "get ready, you'll be escorting her, it's getting late and she shouldn't be going off on her own..,"

Amara's jaw dropped open, "but..."

"Sorry no buts, your father would have our heads on a chopping block if something happened to you", was the second interruption she got before the heavy built man turned to Roberto, a brow perked upwards, "What are you waiting for kid?"

Without a word Roberto made his way past the horse stalls towards a closed door. when he reached it he opened and disappeared through it, a few minutes later he reemerged  a shirt now covering his chest. He gave a small nod in farwell at Victor before making his way out of the stable with the younger girl not far behind.

Thirty minutes later, in which they had traveled in silence they found themselves sitting feet apart on a hill watching the orange and yellow hues of the setting sun.

“You are acting as if this is something I wanted and you of all people should know that I don’t."

Roberto didn’t turn to look at her, his eyes staying focused on the sun before him. He was upset, his blood was boiling with frustration at knowing that she wasn’t his, she never had been. He had set himself up to believe that in some way she was and less than twenty four agos that illusion got ruined, so he kept his eyes on the setting sun. It helped relax him, he didn’t know why the big ball of fire in the sky had that reaction on him but at this time it was a good thing, he knew it would help still his temper.

The ironic thing about his love for the view and the sun was that it wasn’t his alone. Through the corner of his eyes he looked at the young girl next to him. Her eyes were closed as the heat of the sun’s ray bathed her in warmth. She liked the sun’s heat and so they both shared a love for the bright orb.

Unconsciously he dug his fingers into the dirt as he thought things through, her words ringing over and over in his head, “You could have said no.”

“Could I?” she asked, her voice was a cross between skepticism and teasing. “And pray tell, what should I have said when they asked why?”

“The truth.”

“They would have laughed in my face and then…” she paused as if not wanting to say the words she was thinking out loud, finally after a moment she whispered the rest of her sentence. “They would have sent you far far away…”

He turned to look at her, his lips parted to speak but before he could say anything she continued.

"I am a princess...and with that title comes certain responsibilities. It's funny that I never paid attention to what those responsibilities would be though..."

"You never thought you'd have to be a queen?"

She shook her head, her eyes looking ahead with a very faraway look looking past the red lit meadow. "I always assumed my mom would be around and I never imagined that we would want to expand the lands after the Great War broke us free from the king under the sun..."

His eyes studied her closely and he could see now what he had refused to see before. Her lips which usually curled upwards were pointed down, her brows were furrowed inwards causing wrinkles on her forehead and her eyes held a glazed look. She suddenly looked a lot older than what she was.

He frowned at himself, she was right, he knew she didn't want any of this, "I apologize for being short with you...it is not my place." He looked away and brought a hand up, "I guess all that playing around in mud and dirt made me forget that..." As he finished the words the soil in his hand trickled out until his it was completely gone leaving his skin stained with dark spots.

She gave a deep sigh, "what now?"

"We should go back, it's going to be an early morning for you. I hear you've started some training..."

"What if I don't want to go back?"

His felt his heart skip a beat at the words, at the meaning of them, but like he had just told her, he remember his place "...I don't think that's an option."

He stood up and outreached his clean hand towards her. She gave a small sigh but took it and with little effort he pulled and had her on her feet. Instead of letting go Amara got on her tiptoes and pecked the unprepared stable boy. He took a deep breath in, inhaling her scent before he melted into her kiss.

She moved away a minute later, leaving him with closed eyes and half parted lips. He kept them close savoring the moment knowing that the occurrence of that action would be less frequent if nonexistent due to the new development. It wasn't until he heard her soft whisper that his eyes opened.

"I wish it was..."

His eyes followed her as she made it to her horse and stopped in front of it, stroking the mane. When she turned around the sadness in her eyes has somewhat dimmed as she went into the part she had to play and just like that the spell was broken. He moved to her and helped her on going back into his own part of stable boy instead of lovestruck man.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O One Month Later O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

It was the night before the Guthries arrive. Amara had already been nervous about the meeting and her feelings only worsened by a look Roberto had given her when she had gone out for her riding lesson. A look she knew meant he wanted to meet. So that night (with the help of a sleeping potion) she made her way out of the castle, her black coat doing a good job of hiding her in the shadows.

She cautiously looked around making sure not be spotted by guards but did stop until she was at the opening of the stable. The area was completely quiet, The animals have been put in their stalls long before. Her head moved sideway and she nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry, it's just me..." His whisper was a warm breath on her earlobe.

She slowly nodded before turning around to face him and taking a step back putting distance between them, "What is it? You never have us meet this late..." Her voice came out in a low whisper as he eyes looked around.

"I just...wanted to see you..."

Amara sighed and held back the smile itching to curl on her lips, though they were sweet words and she got butterflies at hearing them, this wasn’t the time. Her head tilted down to stare at the ground, "It’s not a good time, I need my rest for tomorrow and you probably do t…”

“I’m leaving.”

Her head moved back up to face him, eyes wide and searching his face as if hoping she hadn’t heard right, “What?”

It was Roberto’s turn to look away from her, his dark brown orbs looking to a far corner that lead away from the castle, “I’m leaving.”

Hearing the words again didn’t do anything to calm the shock she felt. She stayed in place watching him, waiting for a smile, for a chuckle, for a hint that it was just a joke. She waited for minutes and it never came. Finally finding her voice again she asked a question, it come out dry and choked, “When?”

He finally turned back to her, “...Now.” He waited for a reaction but she just stood in place watching him some more, the only obvious change was how her eyes suddenly seemed shinier than before. He took steps towards her, stopping when his dirt covered shoes made contact with her clean slippers.

His head leaned down towards her, “I thought you should know…” and without waiting for a proper response he dipped in lower until his lips were on hers.The peck was soft, gentle but quick as he moved away not waiting for her reaction.

“Good-bye, Amara.”

And just as quick as the words came out he was gone from her sight. She had originally thought that he would walk past her, out into the dark night but was surprised when he went through the wood door connected to the stable. She stared at the closed door for a minute before she came back to her senses and made for it, opening it without a second thought. Once inside she gave her surroundings a quick glance.

It was a small room, there was nothing out of the ordinary about it, everything in it was what you would expect in someone’s bedroom but one thing did seem out of place. Her eyes stayed on the dark red flower in the small brown pot, she recognized it as a flower that grew in the meadow where she had first met him. The meadow which they had played in when they were children, the one they had rolled around the first time they kissed, the one they alway went to when they were alone. It was their meadow.

She frowned and looked away, her eyes roaming the area until they found what they were seeking. He was sitting on the edge of a bed, his palms covering his eyes and his fingers digging into his dark curls. Her eyes narrowed and she moved towards him not caring that her usual calm and posed deminure was about to go out the door.

“How dare you!”

His head came up out of his hands to look at her, the surprise he felt at seeing her apparent of his features. “What are you doing in here?”

“You think that you can just say that and not even explain!”

“Mara, seriously you need to leave, you know that you aren’t allowed here,” he answered getting up from his sitting position

“If we’re going to talk about things that I cannot do then let me remind you that I’m not even suppose to be out at this time, you have some explaining to do and I’m not leaving until I get answers. Do you have permission to leave? Does anyone ever know you’re planning to go?”

He frowned as he walked over to her, “I don't need permission to do anything, I’m not a slave.”

She sighed and crossed her hands in front of her chest,      "That's not what I meant. This is your home..."

"Not really...we both know the story. This is your home but it's not really mine...and to answer your first question, Victor knows."

"And he's just letting you go?"

He shrugged, "figures that I have my reasons..."

"What reasons?"

He stared at her intensely, "you know why..."

She frowned, "don't you dare make this about me..."

He gave an agitated sound, "You're asking why? What do you want? A lie?"

"There is so much here for you other than me..."

"Really? Like what? You want me to turn from stable boy to stable manager? You want me to stay here and watch you marry someone else? Watch them embrace you, kiss you, love you..."

"..."

"Should I start going into town to find someone who would want all that with me. Someone to throw around in my hay bed..."

He stopped talking as his head moved to the side at a rapid speed. His cheek burned and ached from the hit but instead of cooling him down and making him realize who he was talking to the action only made his temper flare. Something he chose not to hide as his hand grabbed her wrist which was still in mid air from the blow.

With a quick and harsh pull her body was pressed up against his, "It's not nice imagery is it..." His whisper was low and cold as he looked at her.

The fire in her eyes stayed but she refused to say anything instead fixing him with an angry look. Though it was intended to look intimidating it only helped him ache even more for what he knew could never be his. His eyes and voice softened when he spoke again.

"I'm not going to stay here and watch you become someone else's...I can't."

Her teeth dug into her bottom lip as her eyes softened at the words, "if it's any consolation He'll never have me like you do..."

"No, I don't suppose he'll have to deal with Hidden kisses and caresses..."

"No he won't, but he'll also never have my heart..."

The small room became eerily quiet as both individuals stared at each other. When they would think back to that night neither would be able remember who made the first move but a move was made.

Their lips joined together, in a sweet and slow movement. His grip on her wrist had slacked and he found himself releasing it all together so that his arm could snake around her small waist drawing her closer.

When they parted for air a few seconds later his forehead rested on hers and as her voice rang out loud and clear he wished he had just left without so much as a goodbye.

"Don't go..."

Her hands slid up to his arms and he felt a gentle squeeze on them. The action and the words cause an uneasy ache in his chest and he knew his next words would make her feel the same.

"I have to..."

Her face made a slight movement upward causing her nose to bump his as her lips lingered near his.

"Then you're leaving me an empty shell..."

Her lips pressed against his once again before he could respond, this time the contact was harsh and demanding. It only got more heated as each minute passed by making his hand go to cup her face and carefully pull away.

"You need to go..."

"I don't want to..." The whisper was low but he heard it loud and clear as she moved in again and gave him a peck.

"I need to go..." He whispered.

Peck. "Not now..."

"You said it yourself, tonight is not a good night..."

Peck. "Tonight is the only night left," her face dug itself into the crook of his neck and his hands wrapped themselves around her waist believing that a hug was what she wanted.

It wasn't until he felt moisture on his neck and teeth in his flesh that he realized that this would be more than a hug. He groaned as he felt her teeth dig in deeper and his head rose up giving her better access to his skin. After she had enough of the chewing on him her tongue slipped out of her mouth and licked over the small area before she started pecking her way up finally stopping at the corner of his lips.

He closed his eyes and moved his head to the side so that when she went for another peck their lips met. His hands went up to cup her face and they stayed that way until forced to part for air. As she try to calm her ragged breaths his hands went to the collar of the black coat easily undoing the the string making the garment fall to the floor.

He took a step back to take a good look at her, it was rare when he saw her in anything other than the dark royal purple. His eyes took in the thin white fabric of her nightgown. The first place they landed was on the low square neck line showcasing the beginning of where her breast joined. He licked his lips but didn’t let his eyes linger there and made them travel downwards, passing the long sleeves that puffed at the wrist until he reached the bottom of the gowns hem which loosely covered her tanned legs.

When he looked at her face her wide brown eyes were shyly looking at him, half her lip was covered under her pearly whites and he couldn't help but be breathless as he stared. She looked like an angel, full of innocence and wonder. She was perfection...and at the moment he wasn’t a stable boy and she wasn’t a princess...he was just a boy and she was a girl.

He wasn’t sure when he had started moving towards her during his thoughts but the next thing he realized was that his lips were back on hers. In his rush to be against her he must have moved her back because they were now against the hard wood wall.

One of his hands was skillfully clumping the material upwards until the hem of her gown was in his hands. With no more hesitation the hand disappeared under the garment. Amara gave a small sound as his warm hand made contact with the soft skin of her thigh. As he gave a small squeeze her head move backward until she it hit the wall. Seeing the opening his head went into the crook of her neck and mimicked the actions she had done on him earlier. Unlike her actions though he refrained from biting knowing that it wouldn’t be a good thing for him to leave marks.

Instead he resorted into giving her skin small nips and as he continued her hands went to his head pulling him deeper into her. The hand on her thigh started rubbing circles on her skin as his other hand which had been resting on her stomach started to travel upwards stopping at a soft mound.

He pinched at it and he smirked into her neck as he felt the the nipple perk out. He pulled away from her and moved his gaze to it, his finger pushed in the small nubbin and watched it pop back out at him, within seconds the nipple on her neglected breast perked out as well.

He swallowed hard and moved his eyes upwards to look at her face. Her eyes were on his hands, brown eyes dilated and teeth biting into the soft flesh of her lip. The sight was overwhelming and he felt his pants get tighter as his fingers put her nipple in between them and twisted winning a low moan from her. He licked his lips keeping his eyes on her and though he loved watching how attentive she was being towards his actions he wanted those doe-eyed orbs on him.

His head dipped down and with his eyes still on her face his fingers let the excited pert go only to replace it’s hold with his lips. His tongue slipped out of his mouth and licked at the cloth around the bud, the action causing the wet cloth spot to become see through. Though his eyes were tempted to go to the sight he didn’t move them from her glazed eyes which had become even darker filled with lust as she watched him.

She let him continue with his licking and sucking but after a minute of it she arched her back giving him the hint that she wanted more. Without any hesitation his teeth bit into her other breast causing her to give a small content sigh which quickly turned into a groan as a finger on his other hand rubbed at the wet spot at her nether lips between her legs.

Her eyes closed when she felt his finger push aside the thin fabric hiding her sweet spot. Her hands then went up and grasped his shoulders when the same finger ran itself down her slippery slit stopping at a her small little button.

A wanton moan escaped her lips before she could help it, his finger vibrated on her clit while he kept his teeth in one of her teat and pinched the other. The pleasure was overwhelming and she moaned some more causing his teeth to let go so he could continue to watch her.

He gave her a charming smile, "you might want to keep it down unless you want our heads on a pike..."

If she heard him she gave no immediate implication until one of her hands left his shoulder and moved to the back of his head. The push forward was needy and desperate and Seconds later, after he moved her night gown down in the front his tongue was back to lavishing her breast, this time making contact with the actual bud.

His pulled away a little, eyes finally leaving hers to look at her ample mounds, the brown nipple looked back at him begging to be touched. His hand went to it and placing it in between his fingers he tweaked it as his other hand stayed focused on her clit.

He groaned when she moaned again, the ache of his own excitement starting to become painful.

"Berto...please...put it in..."

All his actions stopped at these words. Even his breathing. He stood up straight and looked into her face.

"What?"

Her hand slid down from his shoulder to go to his hand,  which had stopped playing with her clit but stayed on her thigh. She easily moved it back to her center and pressed it into it.

"In..."

His eyes widened at the realization and he pulled away from her completely. The actions they had been doing was nothing new, they had gotten curious during their private affair wondering what would help those weird aches they would get in certain spots when they were together. The sudden memory of the first time her tongue had licked the tip of his nether head came to mind and he mentally cursed at himself as he felt himself pulsate. He shook the memory away bringing him back to the moment at hand.

"What?" He asked again.

Though they had tried a few things, that was something they hadn't done. They both knew that was a barrier that shouldn't be broken.

"I told you, he's not going to have me like you do..."

"You really want to see my head on a pike."

"They already checked me. The sent a healer to make sure everything is intact. If they ever do find out you'll be long gone..."

"..."

"If I'm going to lose you then I want to keep something that will be mine forever..."

She didn't have to say anything else. He closed the distance between them, his lips touching hers but unlike earlier, the was gentle and sweet. She took a deep breath in when she felt his hand back in between her legs carefully rubbing the area.

Her hand followed suit and found his hard-ache, giving it a squeeze over his pants that had him moaning into her mouth. Enjoying the sound he made she went for another squeeze, this time moving her hand into his pants making another moan escape his mouth when the warmth of her hand made contact with the heated hardness.

His lips left hers but he stayed close to her letting his forehead rest on hers while she slowly started moving her hand up and down on it causing his breath to go ragged. The new action also distracted him enough that he stopped his circular movements making her whine at at the loss of the sensation.

This was something she didn't like and she made her point on it when she gave a hard squeeze at him which wasn't quite pleasurable. His eyes opened and he gave a small smile, his head moved in towards her placing a small kiss on her lips while his fingers moved again.

"So pushy..." He breathed into her lips.

"I get what I want..." She replied and pecked him back.

"I know you do."

"Then what are you waiting for?"

His eyes stayed on her determined stare and his finger got lost in her slick folds again. This time ignoring the little button that would make her squirm and groan and going  straight to the the small tight opening.

Her mouth parted and the hand holding his penis let go to hold onto to his waist instead. Her head pushed itself into his shoulder and he could feel her body tightening up as his finger pushed deeper into her. When he went as far as he could he remained still letting her get used to it and then ever so slowly he started going in and out.

Her body stayed rigid as he continued and it wasn't until a few minutes later that her body relaxed and her hold on his shoulders lightened. Small sound were muffled into his shoulder and he felt his fingers start speeding up when her hand went back to his hard erection starting a pattern of her own which he chose to match.

Her moans became louder and her hips starts moving in a circle figure when he added another finger and his thumb rubbed on her clit. It wasn't long after that when he felt more of her juices burst out and she clamped down on his finger. Her whole body shook as her hands gripped into him to help her from falling.

He kissed her lips and his head went down to her shoulder where he could feel the fast beating of her heart as she tried to calm her body. When she had calmed her hands went to the base of his shirt and tried pulling it off making him pull away to help her.

Once it was off her hands explored the sun kissed skin and as her fingertips played with the waistband of his pants her lips found themselves pecking a trail down his chest, past his belly button where small hairs tickled her nose.

Her hands pulled the pants completely down but before her face could follow he pulled her back up and pressed her back against the wall. His hands found the hem of her dress and seconds later it was over her head. As he pulled down the light clothing hiding her private area he pulled down the rest of his own clothing making them completely bare to each other for the first time.

He then took her hand and lead her to his bed laying her carefully on it. Before joining her he took the arm he was holding and placed small kisses on the inside of her wrist, making a path up to her shoulder then back down past her breast (giving her nipple a nice little nibble along the way), away from her stomach until his lips got to a patch of coarse hair covered in the sweetest nectar he could ever imagine.

His tongue came out of his mouth and licked the top of her folds preparing itself to make it's way through but before he could her hand dug itself into his dark curls making him look up at her.

"You didn't let me, why should I let you?"

"I'm sure you taste better than me," he teased but stopped his actions getting in the small bed that usually only fit him.

Her smooth back touched his hard one, her body curving into him fitting like a puzzle. His hand went to her shoulder and slid down her body causing goosebumps on her skin. He continued this until he felt her butt bump into his pelvis the action causing his aching penis (which he had been trying to ignore) stab her tanned cheek.

He growled and gave her shoulder a small bite before pulling away remembering that her body should remain flawless.

"If you keep doing that you might end up with more than fingers there..."

Her hand grabbed his from the spot on her waist where it and decided to stop and she brought it up to her face. Giving each finger a kiss on the tips.

"Maybe that's what I want..." She whispered huskily and moved his hand to her breast.

He played with the erect bud  as she had her butt bump into him making another moan escape his lips.

His face nuzzled into the side of hers, his breath tickled her ear lobe, "Are you certain? There's no coming back from this?"

Her response came as an action, her lower body twisted and turned making her behind rub against his hard cock. His hand left her breast and went to rest on her waist stopping her actions. His fingers slowly caressed the area before his hand followed the curve of her ass until it got lost in between her legs finding her wet slit. He pumped a finger in and out slowly and while he did so her head leaned into him having it rest against the side of his face. As his fingers kept working their magic she let out a soft mewl that drove him over the edge. His fingers slipped out of her hot hole as his dick pulsated and he pressed her closer into him.

His hand then went down in between their bodies where he grabbed at his heated erection and positioned it at her opening, his eyes went to her face. He wanted to watch her...no, he needed to watch her. He need to watch her expression as he went in and made her his, even if it was just for one night.

She must have had a similar idea because her hungry dilated eyes were already on him, waiting. His face moved towards her own as his body slowly moved in and his lips captured hers when a whimper escaped through her teeth as he penetrated her small opening.

Her body stiffened and her nails dug into the skin of his arm which was now wrapped around her waist. He made a move to stop and pulled away but feeling his hesitation Amara lightened her grip on him and caressed the fresh nail marks, her lips parted and her tongue drove into his.

He took that as a signal to continue and they parted once he was completely inside of her. When there he didn't move giving her time to adjust to the size. Sweat dripped off his face as it took all the energy he had not to exit and re-enter. She was tight, extremely tight and it felt so damn good, so much better than the nights when it had just been his hand with thoughts of her.

Her breathing was ragged and a small tear escaped one of her eyes making him frown and move to kiss it away. She gave a small smile at the gesture and moved so that her lips were on his once more, as they kissed her body moved, easing him out and then allowing him back in.

They kept this going for a few minutes, their lips staying connected only parting for small pants of breaths and it was in between those small breaks where Roberto started to hear it...moans. Amara’s small whimpers of discomfort were turning into whimpers of pleasure which only became more obvious to him as she started to meet him thrust for thrust.

Though she was getting impatient and smacking hard against him he kept his pace slow and gentle, this was their first and last time and he wanted to make it last. At least that’s what his plans had been until her sweet voice called out his name in a breathy tone. Then that thought flew out the window.

His grip on her waist tightened and his thrusts got deeper and faster. At some point that hand moved and hid itself in between her thighs finding the small bundle of nerves that had her screaming.  His other hand took quick action and covered her mouth helping the screams turn into muffled whimpers but he did not stop and the way she arched her body into his told him that she didn’t want him to.

He groaned as she started to clench around him and the fingers teasing her clit left their spot to grab a hold of her humble breast to hold her in place as his thrusts became more eccentric. His face then buried itself into the back of her neck as his dick pulsated and her body quivered and shook from the new sensation of her orgasim. Feeling that his own was coming he quickly pulled out and pointed away from her letting his white seed out spit away from her.

After grabbing at cloth on the floor at random he cleaned himself up and laid back down embracing her so that her back was pressed into his chest. Through the contact he could feel her heart beating wildly and he then kissed at her exposed shoulder. His eyes closed as her breath started to steady and soon both went into a slight slumber pretending that this wasn’t their only night together...

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Thirty minute later Roberto woke himself up with a fright, he looked around paranoidly but calmed after noticing the dark sky, they still had some time. As carefully as he could he pulled away from the girl in his arms, trying his best not to wake her. He sat on the edge of the bed knowing that he had to start getting ready and while he debated on what route he would take he felt a shift in the bed before soft lips made contact with his shoulder.

"It's time..."

Amara stopped her small kisses on the tight muscles and rested the side of her face on his shoulder.

"So you're still leaving?"

"...This wasn't going to change that, you know that. If anything it would make it harder for me to stay."

"...I love you."

His face moved sideways to face her and their lips met in a passionate lip lock. His tongue savored her taste. When they pulled away he stood up and started getting changed. She watched him for a few second before her eyes went to the blooming red flower. She looked away from it and frowned, then stood up and started to gather her own clothes. Within moments both were back outside of the stables, their eyes searching for any signs of danger.

When none was found he turned back to her and tried to ignore the glaze in her eyes. She was the first to break the silence, “Where will you go?”

He shook his head, “I don’t know, I’m just going to start walking and see where I end up, who knows maybe I’ll find out a bit more about myself out there. It’s a big world…” she nodded but didn’t say anything else. "It was an honor to serve under you..." He gave a slight bow to her.

Her eyes widened but again she didn't reply and then he turned away from her and took a few steps but before going very far he stopped, turned back around went to her, taking her into a tight embraced. His nose dug itself into her hair getting a whiff of her scent before his lips took hers again savoring her for the last time.

When they parted he wiped a tear off her cheek and his nose met hers, "I loved you first...even if you were all dirty covered in mud and I'll love you still even after I’m gone..."

And then he was really gone, leaving Amara to stay and look after a shadow before she came to her senses and stealthily return to her room.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O Next day O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

The castle was bubbly and full of life as the Guthrie court intermingled with the Aquilla household. There was only one person they were all waiting for. The Queen looked around and after not seeing her daughter she called a dark skinned hand maiden over.

"Where is Amara? She was suppose to be here to great Prince Samuel."

"I was told she was still preparing herself my lady."

"We'll go fetch her, it's rude to keep him waiting..."

Seconds later though everyone in the room turned as a door open. The queens eyes widened as she looked at daughter. Her gown was a dark red embedded in with gold lining she gave a hard smile and walked over to her placing a kiss on her cheek.

"I thought we agreed on green my dear...it's Samuel’s preferred color."

"You agreed on green mother, I much preferred red today," Amara answered calmly but the reply made her mothers jaw drop.

"And a lovely choice it was..." A voice interrupted them making both Aquila woman turn to the unfamiliar voice.

Amara eyed the tall blonde boy who smiled charmingly at her, "Princess Amara, it's a pleasure finally meeting you," he then bent down and took her hand placing a soft kiss at her palm.

"Prince Samuel, I presume?"

He smiled and nodded before calling two young girls over, "I brought gifts. I heard that you had to give up your hand maiden due to your troops coming to help train our soldiers. This is Jubilation and Rahne, please take them in Ororo’s stead..."

"You've met Ororo!?" Amara asked surprised and excited.

Sam nodded again, "Yes, she had quite the tales to tell about you..."

"Don't believe them all."

The blond laughed, "I assure you, all good things."

She gave a faint smile, "She is well?"

"Very, Ser Howlett rarely lets her out of his sight."

"I'm glad, she chose to stay my handmaiden even after the marriage ceremony,  though she didn't have to. I am glad she's finally taking time to rest."

He nodded, "I do hope Rahne and Jubilation will do a good job in giving you the same comfort she did."

Remembering that he had called the two girls over Amara's eyes shifted to them. They seemed around the same age as her, one had long raven hair, tied in a ponytail with almond eyes and cladded in simple and plain yellow dress. The other girl was wore a similar ensemble, the only difference was that it was in a dark shade of green. The girl was slightly taller, her short red hair caressed her shoulders and on her head was a green headband that kept her bangs out of her face..

Amara gave a small smile at them and gave them a curt nod. At the action both girls gave a deep bow, when getting back up the raven haired girl smiled brightly at her. The other girl avoided her gaze completely though, keeping her eyes to the ground.

“I am sure we'll get along lovely, Danielle can show them to my quarters…” at the new name the dark skinned maiden who had been charged with fetching her appeared and ushered both girls away. Before leaving, the green clad maiden raised her eyes from the floor and bright green eyes met dark blue.

Amara watched Samuel carefully as he watched both girls depart. He didn’t turn back to her until they were completely out of sight. When he did turn back to her she pretended not to have notice the exchanged and a smile she had been training to perfect curled onto her lips.

“Shall we?” he asked offering her hand.

She nodded and took his hand, it was warm but her smile faltered a bit as realized that the heat was no where near what she had felt the night before. Nor would it ever reach that warmth.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

They were married a month later. Parents from both sides deciding that it was in fact a perfect match. She had been nervous that first night, thinking the worst. Thinking that he would force himself upon her and she would have to bare the pain of being taken by another that didn’t hold her heart, but he surprised her when he didn’t even try to lay a hand on her. He surprised her even more when he told her that it would remain that way until she felt ready.

At first she thought he was just trying to prove to her that he was a gentleman and with passing days he would become irritable by this decision and eventually change his mind. But days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months with him never pushing the issue. He really was a gentleman.

There had been times early in their marriage stage where she worried about this for him. After all he was a young man, and young men had needs, but she started noticing a pattern where a certain green eyed redheaded maiden of hers would vanish and her worry lessened.

Living in the Guthrie Castle, her castle, went on in the same manner as when she lived with her parents. The only difference being that she was now a queen in waiting, and future queens could not play in mud...

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

“You are quiet and looking at them again…” Amara blinked and looked away from the dark red flowers. “You are thinking of your friend?”

Her brown orbs met with a lighter shade in the reflection of her mirror.

“No,” she lied and refrained from shaking her head since the younger girl was brushing her brown locks.

Jubilation, who she had started calling ‘Jubilee’ nodded in response but remained silent. She had grown close to the girl and she knew her very well, well enough to know that she knew she was lying.

“Are preparations for tomorrows journey complete?”

There was another nod, “Rahne is taking care of it now highness.”

Amara’s eyes involuntarily rolled, “We’re alone Jubilee, Amara is fine.”

There was another nod but no correction, instead the other girl added, “Your parents will be thrilled to see you, it’s almost been a year since your marriage…”

Amara slowly nodded and her eyes went back to the dark flowers, “Yes...in a few weeks it will be a whole year since I met Sam.”

“It will also mark a year with me in your service…”

“Yes…” was the low answer.

Jubilee’s eyes went back to the mirror to look at her mistress. Her lips were curled downwards, her eyes were glazed over with a very far away look and she couldn’t help but frown too, whatever was on her mind was causing her pain.

“Time goes by rather quickly…”

Amara nodded but didn’t answer and soon the only sounds in the room where the strokes of the brush going through her hair.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Being back home was not was she expected. It was rather depressing, everything she saw brought back memories of a time she would have prefer to forget but could not. Her parents didn’t make the stay more enjoyable either, each day talking about babies that would be heires.

It was an uneventful start to their visit but that quickly changed towards the second week of their stay. Loud ruckus awoke the whole household in the middle of the night and within minutes everyone was outside, torches in hand.

Apart from the guards, Sam had been one of the first to be out and he held an arm out to stop her from going any further once he saw what had caused all the commotion. The Young Queen to be was curious though and ignored his warning taking another step forwards. Her eyes widened at what she found.

It was a man laying motionless on the ground, he wore heavy armor and had red splotches on him.

“The horse was carrying a banner…” Everyone turned to look at the man that had spoken. Victor Creed walked towards them banner in hand, “It’s yours sire…”

“Mine?” Samuel asked surprised making the heavy built blond nod and show him the design on the banner. “That means it has to be one of Ser Howlett's men…raise him.”

At the command multiple guards lifted the battered man. One of the guards took the heavy helmet off as another searched the small pouch that was being carried and seconds later a scroll was pulled out and outstretched towards the young prince.

Samuel took the paper and read it’s contents, his eyebrows furrowing in as his eyes skimmed the parchment.

“What is it?” Amara asked her husband.

His lips opened to speak but he hesitated, after a few seconds he tried again, “There’s been a siege on our castle…”

“What?”

“It says the castle has been taken over...my father...he’s...he’s been…”

Amara’s eyes widen in horror as her hand went to her husband's arm in a form of comfort. “It’s a lie!” her eyes then moved to look at he father who had made the outburst.

“Who would have reason to take over anothers castle!” he added appalled.

“There has been people murmuring and mumbling about such things going on in the east ” All eyes went back to the hairy blond man in the group. Victor looked towards Lord Lucius Aquilla, “They say it’s a young man, a man is claiming to be the heir to the throne…”

“What thro…”

“The son of the King of the Realm Under the Sun…”

Lord Aquilla shook his head, “No, that can’t be...he was killed...they were all killed. My men were there and witnessed it! This has got to be some sort of joke.”

Victor moved closer to Sam and took a glance at the scroll he was holding, “That’s definitely my brothers hand…”

“Ser Howlett?” Amara remarked worriedly and looked from her husband to her father. “What does that mean?”

“Is he alive?” Lord Aquilla asked nodding his head towards the fallen soldier. The guards nodded which then prompted him to look at his daughter, “We will find out once he rises…get the medic.”

“Hank went into town to replenish his supplies.”

There was a curse from the older man but before he could reply they all jumped as the dark skinned girl yelled, “Jubilee!”

Sam eyed his petite wife curiously, “What…”

“My handmaiden Jubilation,” she interrupted him and turned towards a guard. “She's studied a bit of healing, fetch her and see what she can do…” the guards gawked at her puzzled which only resulted in her eyes narrowing, “NOW!”

Two of them left in a rush after her yell and the others then started taking the man away but before he was completely out of sight Amara eyed him carefully. Something didn’t feel quite right about the situation and the biggest thing that bothered her was that she had met many of Logan’s men in the past...that one didn’t look familiar.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Jubilee dipped the white towel into the warm water. Her eyes stayed focused on the face of the soldier before her as her hands gently wiped the blood stains off. She silently mused to herself that he looked a lot younger now that he was clean compared to the mess he had been when she first saw him.

She sighed and wondered how long it would be until he awoke. She had been left with the duty to attend to him until he did so. At first there had been a few guards in the room with her but after a while they had been called away to start to strategize a counter attack which left her alone with the stranger.

She gave another audible sigh before dipping the towel into the warm water again.  After twisting it to make sure she got the excess water out her hand went to lay the cloth on his forehead but before she could make contact with it she gave a startled yell which was quickly muffled by something rough covering her mouth.

Her eyes widened as something cold got pressed against the skin of her throat and through her peripheral she saw a blade shine. Her eyes then turned and looked into in bluish gray orbs.

"Scream and I won't hesitate to do it....are you going to scream?" He pulled the blade away from her skin and she shook her head. He nodded dropped his hand from her face, "Where am I?"

"Lord Lucius Aquila’s castle, Magma..."

His whole body relaxed and he pulled away from her, "I made it..." He mumbled to himself and then looked around, "I have to speak to him..."

"They already found your scroll, they know about the siege."

"Oh..." He replied and sat back down on the bed he had been laying in. As he sat he looked at his hands and saw that they were all bandaged up.

"I cleaned and dressed your wounds...they were all pretty minor except for the one on your waist..."

This was when he realized that the top half of his armor was off. His head lifted to thank her but he stopped noticing the red tint to her cheeks as she looked away from him. "Thank you..." He remarked after a minute of silence.

She nodded and while still looking away from him added, "It was nothing, like I said they were all pretty minor, I‘m surprised you passed out..."

"It was a long journey, no food or water and multiple injuries...it happens."

She turned back to look at him after noticing the tone, he was serious and watching her closely it almost unnerved her because it seemed like he really wanted her to believe the words.

"I uh...was able to get all blood cleaned off...the only thing that didn't come off was that..." Her eyes went to his hair. Most of it was blonde but at the tips it turned into an orange color. At first she had thought that blood had stained it but while he slept she had tried getting it off but it was no use, the color didn't change.

"I'm not surprised. It's my own dye, only I know what can take it off." She nodded at the explanation, "I'm Ray..."

"Jubilation," she answered immediately after and then fidgeted in place as he kept his eyes on her.

After a few seconds he stood up again, "I would still like to talk to your lord, there are things he needs to know."

"I'm sure they would prefer for you to gather your strength first..."

"I'm sure they would but there's no time, Ser Howlett has fallen he needs to act before it too late..."

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Amara frowned as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. It had been one full week since Ray's account of what happened at the Guthrie Castle. One week since she had heard about Ser Howletts death and a week of pondering what could have happened to Ororo. They had sent scouts out the very next day but no one had returned and they had received no messages.

She sighed and her eyes closed as the bristles of the brush went through her locks of hair. Her mind going to the weird haired soldier who had brought all the bad news to them. He had been added to her fathers guards after they had waited for news from the scouts, since they never got word they assume everything he had said was true.

Though she still had suspicions of him considering that she didn’t remember ever seeing him in Logan's troops she had to admit that after watching him during trainings, he did have the same fighting stance.

Her eyes opened and she looked past her and Rahne s reflection in the mirror to watch Jubilee bulk up a blanket making a divider in the middle of the large bed.

"That Raymond is becoming quite popular with the girls around Court..."

Rahne gave a coy smile at her mistresses comment and though her hand kept it’s brushing movements going her eyes looked into the mirror at the other girl in the room.

Jubilee briefly froze in place before continuing her work, "Is he? I hadn't noticed..."

"I hear the younger maids say it the hair...it's quite unique."

Amara lips curled upwards at Rahne's comment , "I would have thought you would have noticed considering that you've been spending so much time with him..."

"You say that as if it's on purpose. If I may remind you that time together is usually as I wait for you return from your riding sessions..."

"It may not be on purpose on your end but I wouldn't say the same about him..." Rahne remarked.

"And if you really don't like that time together you could always come along on my rides..."

Jubilee made sure not to look at the princess as her eyes gave a small roll at her teasing tone, "Or maybe you could ride less your highness..."

Amara looked away from the light skinned girl to look towards the window where a freshly watered pot rested on a window sill, "But the flowers are in bloom..." She replied distractedly as she looked at the red flower.

Both handmaidens become quiet at the comment continuing their actions without any more words. Neither completely knew the story behind her attachment to the flower, except for the fact that it reminded her of a friend. After a few seconds of gazing at the plant Amara looked away and turned her attention to the bed.

"I wonder if Sam will be late tonight..."

"They are strategizing the counter attack a week from now with Ser Crisp leading the lines, they might take their time to get it just right. They are nervous of how fearsome the rival army is considering they brought down Ser Howlett.”

Amara's eyes widened at this information and noticing the look Rahne dropped her gaze to the floor. Amara suppose she shouldn't have been surprised that she was knowledgeable about what was happening but she had to admit she was surprise that she knew even more than her.

"Well then, I'll just go ahead without him," she answered breaking the tense silence and grabbing the girls hands stopping her brushing actions. "You can both go for the night, Jubilee will you fetch me some warm milk before you go..."

"Of course," Jubilee answered as Amara got on to her side of the bed. After tucking her in both girls made to leave the room. Their room was next door so that they could be as close to the couple as possible, Jubilee had to pass that door in order to go down into the kitchen.

As she passed it and Rahne stopped they both noticed movements from inside, the brown almond eyes met green.

"Don't linger and remind him to be quiet on the way into her chambers...you know she hates being woken up in the middle of the night."

Rahne nodded but Jubilee was already gone before she could see the action. On her walk down the petite girl frowned at the mess up. She knew Amara knew about Rahne's and Sam’s situation what she didn't understand was why she’s let it continue or why they made sure to stay apart while they slept.

Her only thought about the situation was that it had to do with Amara's friend, she requested one of those flowers in all her primary rooms, it some how brought her some comfort which briefly made her wonder where this friend was now.

Her thoughts were then distracted as she reached the kitchen and set the milk to warm on the stove. Her eyes roamed around as she waited but they stopped when they reached the window and she found herself squinting and going towards the small opening. There was a flame in the distance blinking in and out.

Her curiosity got the best of her and she walked towards the back door to get a better view of what it could be. Once she slowly and quietly opened the door her jaw dropped and the words left her mouth without thinking.

"You are planning a coup!"

The sound of a torch sizzling out as it submerging in water was heard before she felt herself pinned to the hard wall and a hand pressed itself onto her mouth. Her eyes met blue grayish ones and she was suddenly reminded of their first meeting. After their brief eyelock the tall soldier looked away from her and into the distance where the orange light appeared again, it blinked multiple times before turning a dark red and disappearing.

There was sigh before he turned back to face her, his young face looking a bit older since his expression was grave. The night was quiet and he was so close to her that when he spoke, though it was just a low whisper, the words echoed all around her.

“Yes…” Her eyes grew with fear at his admittance and as they did his head moved in closer to hers. “I am sorry...I can not give you details about what exactly it is I am doing, doing so would make you an accomplice and if I get caught before the time is right you will hang besides me…” she started fidgeting trying to get away from his hold but this just caused his grip on her to tighten and he got even closer making their noses touch. “Jubilee...I swear to you on my honor as a knight, and yes that part of my story is true...I do not mean you nor your Mistress any harm.”

Jubilation blinked but didn’t move anymore or try to respond. After a few seconds his grip on her loosened and the hand that was being held to her mouth dropped down to his side. His face slightly moved to a different angle making their noses rub against each other as he breath “I swear” against her lips.

His head moved to get even closer but before contact could be made she squeezed away from him and ran inside locking the door behind her. She made quick strides to get upstairs but stopped remembering what she was originally suppose to he doing. She quickly found a clean cup and poured the warm liquid into it and made towards the bed chambers never looking back knowing that if she did blue-gray eyes would be on her.

A few minutes later she found herself back inside her mistress chambers, Amara had dozed off and awoke to the door closing. Jubilee noticed that Sam hadn’t made it in yet.

“Jubilee, what happened? You’re late…”

“I apologize, highness I…” Jubilation stopped talking thinking back to the sincerity in Ray’s eyes as he promised that neither of them were in danger. Her hearted started to beat out of control as her teeth dug into her bottom lip before continuing and walking towards the dark skinned girl, “I...got delayed. There was no wood in the stove so I had to fetch some before preparing your drink…”

“Oh…” was the soft answer and Amara took the cup from the younger girl. Jubilee watched her carefully with a solemn face and hoped to the divines that she had not made a mistake.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Amara did not like being woken up in the middle of the night. She was trained early on in life that Princesses and Queens needed their sleep to look as radiant as they could, so when she woke up to the sounds metal hitting metal she was not amused. She groggily sat up from her bed and wondered if the troops had decided to move ahead early with their attack plan  though they weren’t scheduled to leave for another two days.

It wasn’t until the smell of smoke registered in her senses that she made out the screams. Her eyes widened and her body jumped up to look around her bed chambers. It was mostly dark but shadows were being created by a light outside and slowly she made her way towards it. Her body jumped in surprise and she turned before she even made it to the window when the chamber door harshly closed. Her eyes squinted to see who it was but she  didn't have to wait long to find out because the person soon lit a candle.

“Jubilee! What’s going on?”

The handmaiden ran to her mistress and pulled her further away  from the window, “We have to get you out of here...the castles been attacked.”

“Attacked? By whom?”

“This so called Heir of the Kingdom, please mistress we must go…”

“But my parents…”

“Have been captured.”

Amara turned to her bed, “Sam…”

“Is gone...and so is Rahne. She was gone by the time I woke…”

“...” Amara remained quiet at this news. Though she and Sam had never gotten physically intimate she had thought they had found a mutual respect and understanding with each other. To hear that they were under siege and he had ran off without a second thought of her was a sad realization of how unperfect their match had been from the start.

Jubilee tried pulling her again but then both young woman froze when a loud echo of a door closing was heard. "They're here..." Jubilee muttered in a horrified tone. She then turned back to the dark skinned girl, "Find a way out of here, I'll stall then as long as I can..."

"You can't go out there!" Amara remarked.

Jubilation grabbed on to the Amara's hands, "I made a mistake a few days ago and I plan on making up for it even it it means my life to make sure that you survive."

"What did you do?"

"Amara, Please run." and with those last words the younger girl let her go and walked away closing the door behind her. Amara stayed frozen in place and just looked at the door surprised that the younger had said her name without being prompted to, this was serious.

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Once the door closed behind her Jubilation pulled a small dagger out from underneath her gown. When she had woken up by the sound of all the ruckus it had been on her bedside table. She had disregard it and left  the room to get answers, on her way she had met Danielle who was able to catch her up to speed before taking off talking about leaving for another castle.

After the encounter she had quickly gone back up towards the stairs, going back to find the weapon where she had left it and then going next door to the Princess.

Who had left the dagger she didn't know, how to use it she knew even less but it seemed now was the time to learn. Her eyes stayed on the sharp shiny blade and then she heard footsteps.

"That's cute...the little maid found herself a toy..."

She looked up to see a man coming towards her, heavy cladded in dark armor with a dark red design at its center.  A long sword was in his hand.

"Stay back!"

"And she thinks she can play with it..." He mused out loud to himself before looking past her. "Is that where Lady Aquilla is? Our new king would like to see her..."

"I said stay back..." She repeated pointing the blade at him while hoping that Amara was finding a way out.

The guard laughed and with his long sword smacked the blade out of her hand. She bent to grab it, a mistake because when she looked back up the long sword was in the air and coming down towards her.

She closed her eyes and waited for the blow but instead heard an anguish cry making her eyes open. The guard was kneeled down before her, sword laying next to him. Under his arm was a blade identical to the one in her hands.

"Was that really necessary?" A gruff voice asked making her look away from the guard in front of her to find two men behind him with identical armor.

"I gave specific orders, neither girl should be harmed. If this is how he greets her how would you have expected him to greet Lady Aquilla?"

There was a sound which she took as agreement from the shorter guard as the taller one walked towards her.

The guard in front of her started trying to get the dagger at his side out but was stopped by the new guard, "Don't be stupid, take that out now and you'll bleed to death, something I would prefer you not to do in front of a lady..."

She looked up to the guard finding the voice awfully familiar. Realization sunk in and her scared and worried expression turned into one of fury.

"You!" She smacked at the armor before realizing that that would be a mistake, a second later she pulled away her hand throbbing thanks to the harsh hit. The guard gave a small chuckle before removing his helmet to showcase the odd two toned hair. She frowned and massaged at her hand before throwing a glare at him, "I trusted you!"

He gave her a coy smile, "You're not hurt, just like I promised." She eyed her hand before giving him a pointed look. He gave a small shrug before taking a step towards her taking her hand in his, "This was your fault..."

"You sure made yourself comfortable while undercover here kid..."

Jubilee looked to the shorter guard at the word and suddenly he seemed familiar too, "Ser Howlett?" There was a small nod and her jaw dropped, "How! You're suppose to be dead!" She turned back to Ray who was now giving her a toothy grin.

"That's a long story for another day, she in there?" The shorter man tilted his head towards the door behind them and Jubilee slowly found herself nodding. "Good, someone wants to see her..."

There were new footsteps then and another warrior appear. Though his armor had the same color and designs it looked different on him somehow. Sturdier and alluring, there was something about him that told you there was something special about him.  He walked right past Ser Logan without saying a word and then passed them in the same manner.

"Hey..." Jubilee found herself calling out and moving towards him only to be stopped by someone grabbing her from the waist keeping her in place. She looked over her shoulder to see Ray watching the man go towards the door. "Who is that?! What's going on..."

"That is the rightful king..." Ray answered and soon the King was out of sight having gone into the room.

"You said she wouldn't be hurt!" Jubilee remarked trying to get out of his hold.

"Believe me...he’s no threat to her."

**O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O**

Amara had paced the room the moment Jubilee walked out the room. She had no desire to pack. With her parents and husband out of the picture she was the lady of this Castle and she would not be backing down that easily. Even if she went down and was captured at least it would be with honor and her head held high, not as a scurrying rat.

It wasn't long after that thought when she heard the click of the door opening. She stopped her pacing and stood at the center of the room, her head held up high showing no fear.

As the black armored individual walked into the room she hid her awe. There was something about him that made her heart start accelerating. She wasn't sure if it was fear of wonder but one thing she knew just by looking at his armor was that he was not a nobody.

The way he walked told her that too, being brought up a noble made it easy to spot another. He stopped walking when he was a few feet away from her, her posture stayed the same even when she suddenly remembered that she was in a nightgown having been too distracted by her thoughts to change into anything else.

"I am Amara Aquilla Guthrie, Lady of Canon Castle and for the time being seeing that you have capture my father and mother, Lady of Magma Castle as well. I demand that you take your men and leave immediately."

The armored man in front of her tilted his head to the side, the dark shadows of the eyes on his helmet staying on her. They stayed quiet for a minute before her eyes roamed the man, stopping when she saw a long sword at his hip.

Ok, maybe being demanding wasn't a good idea, especially considering he had yet to answer. She almost wondered if he had ignored her on purpose.

"Fine, if the castle is want you want then do with me what you want but let my people go...they..." She stopped talking as he started walking again, this time in a circle around her as if he were a vulture and she was his prey. This thought made her nervous and as her lips parted to clarify what she meant by "do with me what you want" he started walking away from her towards a window.

Her lips closed again and she watched as he stopped directly in front of the window. One of his hands went towards his other and after a few metallic sounds one of his hands pulled and the heavy metallic glove came off, landing on the floor with a loud ‘clank’.

Her eyes widened, was he getting undress? Her eyes sought the room looking for a weapon but before finding one they went back to him and she froze. His exposed hand was touching a petal on her flower. That same hand then dug its fingers into the rich soil, when he pulled the hand back they were covered in it.

Her brows scrunched inwards in distaste. Both her castles had fallen to this mad man? Her expression went back to an indifferent expression as he turned to face her. He started walking towards her again and she didn’t flinch or move when he stopped directly in front of her nor when he leaned his head towards her.

“You look good…”

Her heart dropped at the husky tone. It couldn’t be…

“But I much prefer you with mud…” as he said the words the dirt covered fingers went upwards to her face touching the soft skin before being dragged down to stain the perfect face with dirt.

“It can’t be…” she murmured more to himself.

The opening of the mouth on his ebony helmet stopped at her ear, “Why not?”

Her face turned and looked into the slits where his eyes were barely visible. Her hands then went up to the sides of the heavy piece of armor unlocking it’s clips before pulling trying to take the object, which failed. There was a small chuckle before his bigger hands reached for the object and pulled up, exposing waves of dark hair.

Her breath halted as her brown eyes met with the familiar darker shade.

“Amara…”

“Berto…”

“It’s Roberto actually. Son of Emmanuel Da Costa, King of the realm under the sun.”

“...” her mouth was ajar as she looked at him but no words came out.

“Yeah, I was a bit surprised at first too,” he remarked with a smile.

She shook her head, “That’s not it…” she answered slowly making him give her a curious look. “You’re here…”

“...Yeah…”

“I never thought I would see you again.”

His smile faltered and he looked at her with a serious expression, “...Me neither…”

“...”

He started to fidget in place as she just kept looking at him as if he was a ghost. “Um...about all this…” he started and looked away from her to the window where a few screams echoed, “Sorry, I wanted to send a message but Logan advised against it, somthing about ruining the element of surprise considering we’re retaking the castles back...but I swear your parents are ok and are getting well taken care of and no one is being hurt…” a yell echoed outside making him frown, “People are just over reacting a bit...but there are no casual…”

He finally stopped talking. Not because of lack of wanting to, more because he was unable to. Her petite body hung from his neck as her lips touched his. Her fingertips grabbed at his hair and his hands in return wrapped themselves over her small waist.

When they parted he looked at her in awe, “I...um...you are married right?”

“He’s gone, If  I would have to guess he probably left when the chaos started. Sam never really seemed to like the idea of ruling, he took one of my handmaidens with him.”

“Oh...I’m sorr…”

“It’s fine, I can’t say I believe it was a real marriage at anytime...”

Roberto stopped his apology at her interruption and he felt his breath stop as he asked, “Why’s that?”

“...He never had me like you do…no one did.”

 

They both stayed quiet after the confession. Another scream from outside broke it and he turned to the open window where Red flower loomed, “You do understand what’s happening right?”

She moved her gaze to it too, “You’re overtaking the castles to reclaim the Kingdom…”

He nodded, “Logan says that there is too much chaos and destruction with all of them doing as they please, that they need structure and something to reunite them...he thinks that something is me.”

“...” Amara didn't comment to this,  instead she found her eyes trailing a path down his face. His jaw had become strong, his face hard, he had grown in confidence so much in their time apart, but she could hear it in his voice, in the way he spoke...her stable boy was still there.

“Are you alright with that? You will be losing your title and your Castles…”

“I stopped wanting a title a long time ago…” Roberto turned back to her at the words and as she took a step closer to him, “All I really wanted was you.”

He closed the gap between them once more, her soft lips meeting his cracked ones. When they parted, he whispered, “And I you…”

There was another small peck before she walked away from him grabbing a robe from a stand near her bed. Another yell was heard from outside, “And It seems we’ll both be getting what we want, but first you need to calm your people down…” she made her way to the door stopping when he didn’t follow. “Let’s go.”

He smiled at her tone, it had not been a request, “I see you’re still pushy as ever…”

“I was trained to get what I want,” she replied waiting for him to reach her. “My lord,” she added making his smile grow.

“I can get used to that,” he mused to himself as he walked towards her making her perk a brow and say ‘Pardon?’. He shook his head and he replied with, “I’m going” while thinking to himself that her Queen title wouldn't be gone for long. He smiled before putting his helmet back on and opening the door to take a step out of the room, stopping when he felt her besides him, where she was meant to be.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O **END** O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hate writing endings to stories. I suck at it! I always feel like they end up corny, le sigh. 
> 
> Roberto: In his absence I imagine Roberto traveling around for a month before stumbling across a small bar (near Sam’s castle oddly enough) where he meets a drunken Ray who tells him he looks familiar and goes on to tell him that he looks like a friend he had when he was a child, a prince. At first Roberto thinks he’s very very drunk and dismisses him as crazy but while Ray tells some stories about his childhood with this ‘friend’ he ends up finding the stories oddly familiar. He ends up waiting with Ray until the next morning wanting to see what he would say while sober, Ray still reacts the same which then prompts Roberto to mention that he doesn’t have memories of his childhood and they both talk things over wondering how likely it would be if he was the small child prince. All this leads Ray (who at the time is a guard not a knight) to talk to a friend back at the castle who he knows isn’t very happy with the way the government order is and would take interest in this. Thats how Logan comes back into the picture and ends up hating himself for not realizing that the prince had been under his nose the whole time. He then helps put things in motion to get Roberto where he needs to be and that’s how they ended up where the story end so yeah, just incase anyone was wondering. Also, I made Roberto bald at the beginning of the story so that he wouldn’t easily recognized though there was a small time gap from the time the castle was burned to when he was actually found.


End file.
